Following Jesus Beyond Sides

By Dean Collins

I am going out on a limb with my introduction hoping you will hear me out before you stop reading. Imagine that you and your friends are all in the same political party and Jesus walked by you and right up to a guy sitting at an information booth for the political party you want nothing to do with. But in this case, Jesus tells the person in the booth, “Follow me,” and the person gets up, closes his booth, and walks off with Jesus.

You might be feeling great, particularly if you think Jesus is in your political party. But the situation gets a little more uncomfortable because the new guy from the other team or party asks Jesus to come to his house for dinner where he will meet lots of his associates. When you get there, you can’t believe what you are seeing. Jesus is hanging out and laughing and talking with the wrong team!  One of the leaders of your party comes over to you because she knows that you are also following Jesus and asks, “Why does your spiritual leader and teacher hang out with these people? Those people are on the wrong side of history, of government. Why, they are sinners, maybe even evil.”

Jesus overhears the conversation and says to the room: “It is not the healthy that need a doctor, but the sick.” And you think but dare not say, “You got that right Jesus. These people are surely sick, and they need much more than medical attention!”

In Matthew 9:9-13, we read a story exactly like that. It wasn’t exactly about political parties, but it certainly was about who some saw as people who were on the wrong side of history. Tax collectors were controlled by Rome, and they regularly took money from the Jewish citizens. And Jesus had the nerve to call someone like that to come and follow him, right along with the people he had regularly mistreated. 

Matthew was seen as one who had been on the wrong team for some time and now was following Jesus. As Jesus spoke to the Pharisees, who were the experts in the law and certainly saw themselves on the right political team as well, Jesus told them: “I desire mercy, not sacrifice for I have not come to call the righteous, but the sinners.” 

I think the gospel is pretty clear that Jesus is still on message. He came for the lost, the sinner, the ones we often see as on the wrong team. And if we are going to truly follow Jesus, then we need to stay on message and do exactly like Jesus did. This means that we will often be in places some think we shouldn’t be. And we will be having dinner with and going to social events that may be different than our team might think we should.

Jesus died because he wouldn’t play politics. He wouldn’t give in to the politics of Rome, and he wouldn’t give in to the religious politics of the day either. What he did do was lay down his life for both groups and for all the tribes and nations of the world. And when he calls us to follow him, then we will have to do the same.

When Jesus said to seek first his kingdom, he made clear that first things must be first. God above everything else. And the kingdom ethic is love and never hatred or partisanship. 

If we believe that Jesus called us not just to be his disciples but to go and make disciples, then we will have to make sure that our discipleship is focused on Jesus above all else.

Something to think about.

Father, the world calls us daily. We are called to fit into the culture around us and to value many things over you. Yet we hear your clear and simple call to follow you and seek your kingdom above everything else. Give us the courage to do that. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Your Time with God’s Word
Matthew 9:9-13 ESV

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